Ankle Braces: A cost effective solution to prevent injuries for players – NBA Update
A study had been published in the American Journal of Sports Medicine which revealed that the ankle braces used by the basketball players are actually good in preventing them from many injuries. The funds were provided for the
study by the University of Wisconsin and the team of researchers does not have any connections with the manufacturers of these braces.
The leader of the study, Timothy A. McGuine said, “There are advertising claims that they'll do wonderful things”.
The researchers of this study found the results by studying a group of about fifteen hundred basketball players. These players were assigned the task of wearing the ankle braces during their practice sessions and in regular season.
These ankle braces were made of synthetic fabric which is protected by Velcro. The results showed that the players who wore those braces suffered 68 percent lesser from fractures or ankle sprain.
McGuine is a researcher at the University of Wisconsin-Madison who carried out the study with his colleagues and they found out that braces reduced the risks of knee injury evidently.
A total of seven hundred and forty players were selected at random to wear ankle braces. Out of them, only twenty seven players got fractured or suffered from sprained ankle in a season.
In comparison with them, seventy eight injuries were received by the players who did not play the game with these braces.
This showed that the injury-risk was three times higher in the players who were brace-free. However, this cannot be regarded as a major difference if the two groups are compared.
McGuine was of the view that these braces could not provide much safety from knee injuries as they are softer and much more flexible. The braces made of semi rigid plastic might be more helpful for the players to avoid injuries.
"Ankle braces could be a cost-effective way to prevent ankle injuries in basketball players," McGuine said. "But they're not a panacea."
The study also made it clear that the braces had no effect if the players get an injury. The injury plagued players took the same amount of time for recovery which was about a week.
However braces are not the only precautionary measure that can be taken to avoid the chances of an injury. Many other studies show that training s that are given to the players for balance, hopping and coordination also give the
same result as that of the braces.
The major difference is of money not of results. For training the team has to pay the trainer a handsome fee but on the other hand braces are not that expensive.
Combination of training with the permanent use of braces while playing the game will be fruitful for the young athletes who are in millions in United States of America.
These injuries are very common among football and basketball players. The players who suffered from the injuries early in their lives are more prone to the injuries in future and that could have devastating impacts on their careers.
One such example is of National Basketball Association’s star, Yao Ming, who had announced an early retirement from the game after suffering from the knee injury of same foot again and again.
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